


Meraki

by ThatBohoFemme



Series: The World of Obscure Emotions [1]
Category: World Wrestling Entertainment
Genre: Dean is Loved, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, M/M, Married Life, Mpreg, Painting, Pregnant Dean, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-10
Updated: 2018-01-10
Packaged: 2019-03-03 03:59:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,283
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13333032
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatBohoFemme/pseuds/ThatBohoFemme
Summary: Sethhatesthe paint color his husband’s chosen for the nursery. It’s this weird dark emerald green named Fairy Queen. It’s so dark that he can’t imagine how it will work.“Where did you get this idea?” he asks, staring at the paint swatches. “I mean- I’m sure it’ll work or I canmakeit work but it’s so dark.” He looks up from the swatches to find Dean glaring at him.





	Meraki

_**Meraki- (v) To do something with soul, creativity or love; when you leave a piece of yourself in your work.** _

Seth _hates_ the paint color his husband’s chosen for the nursery. It’s this weird dark emerald green named Fairy Queen. It’s so dark that he can’t imagine how it will work.

“Where did you get this idea?” he asks, staring at the paint swatches. “I mean- I’m sure it’ll work or I can _make_ it work but it’s so dark.” He looks up from the swatches to find Dean glaring at him.

“We had a deal,” Dean says, running his hands over his swollen belly. “You don’t want me near the paint, I choose the color.” He glances down, clearly having a moment with their baby. “Your dad’s being difficult.”

“I am not being difficult,” Seth murmurs, pursing his lips. The paint color’s just dark. “Will you let me offset with something like this?” He holds the paint swatch out. “It’s green. Just paler. It’ll highlight the fairy queen.” He nods in the direction of a waiter, indicating that they would need a dessert menu.

“I have you trained,” Dean teases. He scratches under his chin, staring at the swatch. “I suppose we can do that.” He laughs. “Maybe we should have just found out if it’s a boy or girl.”

“What happened to ‘life is full of surprises but so few are good’?” Seth teases. “We only have like 2 months to go.” Dean’s expecting their first child in two months. They’re nervous but excited.

“Well, if we knew if it was a boy or girl, we’d have a name and a properly painted nursery,” Dean says. “But I’m still happy to wait and find out." He laughs again, his hand moving in circles around his belly. "Come here."

Rolling his eyes, Seth stands. He moves to Dean's side of the table and squats next to him. He laughs, Dean seizing him by the hand and pressing it into a spot on his belly. His eyes sparkle as though he were sharing a big secret that he'd been told not to.

"Did you feel that?" Dean asks, moving Seth's hand over to another spot. "They're kicking."

"They?" Seth raises an eyebrow. "You're still not getting any definitive vibes?" He had thought that Dean would have a feeling either way by now but apparently, he was wrong.

"I still say girl but on the off chance I'm wrong, why upset the balance?" Dean replies, never taking his eyes off Seth. "All I know is we have a very active child who clearly cannot wait to meet us as much as we cannot wait to meet them."

"We'll go to Home Depot and get the paint after dinner?" Seth asks, rising to his feet. "We only have two months to go and the last thing I want is you being exposed to paint fumes. They're not good for the baby."

"We'll be fine," Dean mutters, taking the menu from the waiter. "I don't know why you're so paranoid. Up until now, everything's been perfect." He scans the menu before facing the waiter. "Just a piece of the flourless chocolate cake, two forks."

Seth settles back into his seat. He's not particularly in the mood for chocolate cake but knows Dean will devour it once Seth takes an obligatory bite.

"I'm going to be like that until they're here. You're Superman when you're not pregnant. Can't imagine how all over the place you are now," Seth says. He sighs, gazing back down at the swatches of paint. "So, Fairy Green and Canyon Wind?" He's still not sold on a green nursery but Dean gets what he wants.

"Sounds good to me." Dean sighs with contentment. "And because Baby kicks whenever you say that, I'm going to say fine with them."

"How do I know you're not tainting the vote?" Seth asks, his eyes shining with amusement. It's been amazing to watch how carefree his husband's become since getting pregnant. It's almost as though the prospect of this new life is renewing him with vigor. There's no need to be quite so serious when you have the ability to be a kid again.

"Would I lie to you?"  
\---  
It takes Seth just over four days to finish painting the nursery. He's taken the time off to ensure Dean doesn't try to do it on his own. As much as he tells Seth he's not like that, Seth knows better.

He stares back at his handy work. The dark green paint is off-set by the green so pale it's practically white. They have to put the crib together but that'll be done by the end of the day.

He opens the window, pointing the electric fan towards it. It's making the room cold, almost unbearably so but Seth's okay with that. He just slips a zip-up hoodie over his pullover. He needs to do this to clear the room of that weird paint smell so Dean can see it. He knows he's being paranoid but Seth's okay with that.

They have just seven weeks to go before they meet their baby. There's still a ton to get done but he's confidant they'll manage. Dean's just starting to nest. There are few things Seth finds odder than the sight of his heavily pregnant husband doing load after load of laundry and cleaning out closets. Dean's not dirty but he's also never been immaculate before.

_Just feel like it's what I need to do._

Once he's confidant that the fumes are minimal, Seth turns off the fan and closes the window. He picks up a small brush, dips it in the remnants of some Fairy Green paint and finds a corner of a wall painted in the much lighter Canyon Wind. With small, even strokes, he paints out a message.

_To Baby, With Love, Daddy 11/7/18_

Seth knows the nursery is a labor of love. He knows he's left his energy imprinted on the walls. He'd done that intentionally. As he painted, he spoke to the bareness of the room, telling it of the hopes he had for their child. In the grand scheme of it all, he didn't think it would be a bad idea to leave a physical signature.

He sets the brush and paint aside, promising to clean up later. For now, he just wants to show off his work to Dean and make sure it gets his seal of approval so they can start putting it together.

"Hey, Babe?" Seth calls, shouting across the house. "Come up here."

The nursery door opens as Dean lumbers in. He's so big now that it's to the point where his belly enters the room before he does. Once all of him is in the room, Dean gazes around in awe, tears forming in the corners of his eyes.

"You were right!" he exclaims, laughing. "The Canyon Wind _was_ the touch we needed to lighten it up." He glances down at his belly. "What's that, Baby? You agree?" He gazes back up to Seth. "Baby agrees. Hasn't stopped moving since we came in."

Seth silently melts at the way Dean uses 'we' to describe himself and their baby. He loves Dean. He loves their baby. 'We' is the perfect word for the combined entity.

"I love you both," Seth whispers in Dean's ear. He presses one hand to the front of his belly and splays his fingers. He's greeted by a kick in the palm. "Was that Baby saying 'I love you too'?"

"Think so," Dean replies, turning to give Seth a chaste kiss. "We love you too."

It's a moment Seth never wants to end.  
-fin-

**Author's Note:**

> Set before Monachopsis. Just a glance at happier times...
> 
> Enjoy.


End file.
